Getting and Adjusting into the Second Job

This article is mainly addressed to engineers working for an engineering company. This is not for IT companies or process industries.

Normally any new employee faces with resistance from the old ones in the company. This can be out of unknown psychology and it is up to the new employee to set the things right so that he is friendly after some time with everyone. I am giving some practical examples associated with working in a professional company.

Normally the employees seek first change into their second job after 3 to 5 years for better prospects or gaining varied experience. So you can make out that these employees are at 3 to 5 years’ experience level. This means that they have to do a lot of running around to achieve their tasks if they are in purchase, Marketing, or HR.

I am giving some practical examples of a purchase executive who has to do this job. His task is to ensure component supply position from vendors in time. In the early days the transaction from in-house component making to outsourcing i.e. to give work to vendors and get the parts from them. Some parts required gauges which were even used for some parts in-house also. Duplicate gauges were outsourced and were taking some time to get them available.

There used to be one employee lower in position than the purchase executive that had to release it from shop stores for a specified period. This fellow was suffering from inferior complexity, was not courteous to any purchase executive and also did not release the gauge from the workshop even though it is available. The matter went up to others at the top and they reprimanded him for his behaviour and ensured the buyers or purchase executives were getting gauges in time. Buyers were all behaving in an exceptionally friendly manner but the gauges fellow was adamant.

I am taking up Quality control where the success of the buyer depends upon the acceptance of the vendors material. Some of the QC inspectors deliberately delayed in inspecting or rejecting the material on flimsy excuses. The purchase executive or buyers had to run from pillar to post to get the parts accepted. Another way was to get friendly with the QC inspectors ( much lower in ranks compared to buyers) and ensure that timely and correct verdict is declared so that the vendors can supply the next lot and the accepted parts can go into the machine assembly.

After establishing friendly relations with QC it is strategic for the buyers to establish friendly relationship with assembly shop workers and super workers. Before that I want to highlight that if the assembly is of smaller components and the finished product is smaller the buyers have to coordinate with QC and sort out the rejections by asking the vendor to sort out material providing them gauges or relevant comparable material.

If the assembled product is a bigger one like Road Engines, Compactors, Water well drills or Diamond core drills the buyer has the option of approaching assembly shop worker along with QC inspector and see whether the part is fitting in the assembly properly or not.

In case of smaller components for small products the QC department applies statistical quality control (SQC) for approval. In case of large products the QC department has to take individual readings of the part before sending it to assembly.

The buyers also have to keep good relations with finance or accounts. He has to expedite checks of vendors timely and are posted to them properly. Sometimes the reconciliation of vendor account where the buyer has to sit with accounts and ensure that proper adjustment is done.

There is also a need for establishing rapport with the blue print room. The people involved here are skilled workers and being friendly with them, addressing them with their names they will be happy. This way the blue print (drawings) are given fast to the buyers to send to the vendors onwards.

Informally the buyer has to establish some friendly relation with security because the vendors are coming and going from the manufacturing place. The security can facilitate their entrance and guide them properly.

Also the buyers have to make 2 or 3 friends in the HR department. From this they will come to know the latest training programs. The buyers can pursue their boss to send them for the latest training programs.